Running To Home
by mione713
Summary: Hermione is going to Australia to find her parents and Harry tags along. What happpens when they decide not to return to Endland?
1. The Decision

RUNNING TO HOME

CHAPTER 1: The Decision

(AN: Most of the major characters are still alive in this story. Many thanks to my beta Maui.)

Three months. It had been three months since the end of the Second War between Lord Voldemort and Harry Potter. But it had been much longer since Hermione Granger had seen her parents. One year, five months, 12 days, 4 hours, 45 minutes and 13 seconds to be exact. That was the exact moment when she sent them to live in Australia, ensuring their protection from Voldemort. Not only had she sent them to live in Australia, but she also erased any memory of the knowledge of their witch daughter. It was tearing Hermione up to know that her parents didn't even know about their daughter, but she knew that it was the best way to protect them in a war where the enemy didn't discriminate between their opponents and the innocent bystanders.

Hermione sat alone on a rock near the lake at Hogwarts. She was contemplating the end of the war and how she would tell her parents of her existence. It was a beautiful clear day, much different from that during the war. To see a day like this seemed much more amazing now that she really had time to stop and appreciate it.

Suddenly, a twig broke and Hermione's reflexes went into overdrive. She grabbed her wand and spun to face the intruder, wand pointed right in his face. It was only Harry she discovered once she took the time to look properly.

"Hey 'Mione. Sorry I scared you." Harry said softly.

"You didn't," she said quickly.

"What are you doing here?" he asked her after she dropped her wand to her side.

"Just thinking about my parents. I'm going to Australia to bring them home. I was just thinking about the best way to do it."

"Have you decided?"

"I'm going to go there by plane. I might even stay for a while. You know, to get away from everything." Hermione whispered. There was a pregnant pause before Hermione continued in an even softer voice than before. "I broke up with Ron."

"Why?"

'We just weren't working. We fight all the time. I thought that it would end with the war, but it's just gotten worse. So I told him I had had enough and I was leaving him. And you know what?"

"No. What?" Harry asked curiously.

"He laughed at me. He thought I was joking. He told me that I would never have the balls to leave him. He said that he was the only one who would have such a Know-It-All like me. That no-one else would love me but him." Hermione's voice caught in her throat.

She looked at Harry. A look of anger crossed his face before he masked it. There was silence before Harry spoke.

"It must run in the family then. Ginny said the same thing when I told her that we weren't getting back together. She's been hounding me everyday about when I was going to take her on a date. I never knew that the Weasleys' could be so controlling. I mean, it isn't just Ginny, its Molly too. She thinks Ginny and I are going to get married. Same with you and Ron. I think that she's already planning the weddings." Harry told her with an angry tone in his voice. "I think your holiday idea sounds good. God knows we deserve it."

"Then come with me, Harry. Come with me to Australia. We won't be gone long enough to worry everyone, but it will still be a break." Hermione said.

"You're brilliant you know, Hermione? I'd love to come with you." Harry said with a smile. There was another short silence before Harry spoke again.

"And you know what, Hermione?" Harry asked her.

"No, what?"

"Anybody would be extremely lucky to have you as a girlfriend." Harry said to her seriously.

"Really?"

"Really, Hermione. Anybody would be extremely lucky to have you." Harry told her.

"Oh, and would that include you by any chance?" she said jokingly.

"Yes," whispered Harry.

Hermione's eyes widened at Harry's answer. "How long?"

"Second year. When the basilisk petrified you. Fifth year just made me realize exactly how much I needed and loved you." Harry told her.

Hermione sighed, "Third year. When you tried to distract Lupin from Sirius."

"We really are blind idiots, you know." Harry said with a small laugh.

"Don't I know it. We subjected ourselves to the Weasleys' when we could have been together." Hermione said.

"I was never good at this, but does that mean we're together?" Harry asked hopefully.

"Yes." Hermione nodded, leaning forward and placing a small kiss on Harry's lips. "Hurry up and go and pack your things. Don't let anyone else know what you're doing. I don't want them to know until we are too far gone for them to stop us." Hermione told Harry.

"I'll meet you in the Entrance Hall at midnight." Harry said.

"Yes. We'll have to spend the day in Diagon Alley tomorrow. You have to let the bank know about our holiday and maybe transfer your money to an Australian bank. Just while we are there. When we leave you can just transfer it back." Hermione said.

"That sounds great. I'll be ready. See you tonight." Harry said, kissing her softly on the lips before he left to go and pack his bags.

* * *

It was ten minutes to midnight and Harry had just found his way to the Entrance Hall. He softly called out for Hermione and watched her step out from behind a statue.

"All set?" Hermione asked him.

"Yes, you?" Harry answered.

"Of course." Hermione replied. "Now we're going to have to walk out the gate that leads to Hogsmeade and Apparate from there."

"Good. Let's go." Harry replied.

Ten minutes later the couple arrived in Diagon Alley. They decided to check and see if the bank was open and to their luck it was. The pair walked through the entrance doors and to the nearest goblin-occupied desk. Harry recognized the goblin at the desk immediately.

"Good morning Griphook." Harry said.

The goblin was shocked by fact that a wizard could distinguish who the goblin was and remember his name.

"Well, well Mr. Potter. What can I do for you in the early hours of this day?" Griphook asked curiously.

"I wish to transfer the money in my vault to one in Australia for a period of time," Harry stated. "Unless there's some other method to obtain money from my vault while I'm overseas?"

"Of course there is, Mr. Potter."

"Really?" Harry said.

"Yes, Mr. Potter. The goblins have recently designed a wallet that allows a wizard to access his money from anywhere in the world. It also automatically turns wizarding money into muggle money when needed. The wallet will never empty so long as you don't run out of money. This comes to a small price to the richer customers." Griphook explained.

"Well then, I believe that I would like that. And may I compliment the goblins for such an invention." Harry said.

"Your compliment is accepted graciously. Here is your new wallet Mr. Potter. And may your travels see you well." Griphook said as he gave Harry the wallet. "The money will automatically be taken out of the vault so you are now free to go. I hope to see you when you return Mr. Potter."

Harry bid the goblin farewell and then took Hermione's hand and led her out of the bank. "Well, now we can either go to the Leaky Cauldron for the night or we can go straight to the airport. It's up to you." Harry told Hermione.

"I want to go straight to the airport. By morning, the others will have noticed that we're missing and will probably check the Leaky Cauldron for us. It's best if we leave now." Hermione said.

"Alright, let's go then." Harry said as the couple Apparated into a deserted alleyway outside the airport. An hour later, the pair were on a plane destined for Sydney airport and ready to take off.

* * *

Sometime later Harry was awoken by Hermione who was shaking his shoulder.

"We're here," was all she said, as she stood up from her seat closest to the aisle. "Let's go, sleepyhead."

"Ok. I'm up. Let's get going." Harry said with a huge yawn. "So how long will it take to get to your parents home from here?"

"Well, it's is about a two hour drive if the traffic is good." Hermione stated. "We have to take a bus to get there or we can take the train and catch a taxi. What do you prefer?" Hermione asked Harry.

"Well, I would prefer to go by train. At least then we can get up and walk around." Harry told her.

"Alright. The train station is not too far from here. We'll walk. It will be nice to stretch our legs after the flight." Hermione explained.

"Right. Well, let's get going then." Harry said.

* * *

Two hours later, Harry and Hermione were standing outside of Hermione's parents' house. It was a beautiful two-story building that was situated on top Dog Hill, which overlooked everything in a twenty-kilometer radius. The front garden was abundant in native flora with a few native fauna making guest visits to the beautiful garden. The building itself was painted a pale green with white on the windows and doors and had a chimney extending from the right side of the house.

"It looks like they're home." Hermione said.

"Yep. Are you ready to do this?" Harry asked her.

"Not really, but it has to be done."

"You're right. Let's go. There's no point putting off the inevitable." Harry told her as he took her hand and led her to the front door and knocked. Not a minute later, Mr. Granger opened the door.

"Hello, can I help you?" Mr Granger asked the couple.

"Yes, actually you can. May we come in?" Harry asked.

"Sure. Come in." Mr. Granger said.

"Is Mrs. Granger home?" Harry asked after Mr. Granger had let them in and led them into the sitting room.

"Yes, one moment, I'll go and get her." Mr. Granger responded. "In the meanwhile, please make yourself at home and I will be back momentarily."

"How am I going to tell them, Harry?" Hermione asked worriedly.

"I don't really know, Hermione. You know them best so just say what you feel they would respond to best." Harry told Hermione, giving her a little kiss on the forehead.

"Thank you." Was all she said, giving him a quick peck on the lips, which Harry quickly deepened. A cough from the door made the pair breakaway blushing.

"Don't they just remind you of us dear?" Mrs. Granger asked Mr. Granger with a smile on her face.

"Yes dear." Mr. Granger agreed. "Now, might you be kind enough to tell us who you are and what you're doing here?"

"Ok. Well there is no easy way to tell you this, so I'm just going to come right out and say it." Hermione began. "My name is Hermione Jane Granger and I'm your daughter." A long moment of silence passed before anyone spoke.

"It's not possible. We don't have a daughter." Mr. Granger said, his face turning red.

"I am your daughter, but due to certain circumstances I had to make you believe that you didn't have a daughter." Hermione told her father.

"And might I ask how you would make us forget that we had a daughter. I mean it isn't something you forget easily." Mr. Granger said gruffly.

"Well, you won't believe us, but Harry and I are magical. Harry is a wizard and I'm a witch. If you just trust me I can prove that I am what I say I am, both a witch and your daughter." Hermione said with a bit of desperation in her eyes and voice.

"Do it." Mrs. Granger said softly, speaking for the first time.

A small smile appeared on Hermione's lips as she dug her hand into the sleeve of her jumper and pulled out her wand. She pointed it at her parents and said the reversal spell from the charm she had cast the previous year. After about five minutes, Hermione's parents spoke again.

"Hermione," Mrs. Granger shouted as she ran over to hug her only daughter. "It's good to see you. I presume all went well with defeating Lord Voldemort."

"Yes mum. Everything is fine, if not better." Hermione said before her father engulfed her in a hug.

"You're all right, pumpkin," he whispered as he hugged her.

"Daddy, I'm fine." Hermione said reassuringly.

"You said that things were probably better than ever, Hermione. Does this mean that you and Ronald are no longer fighting?" her mother asked curiously.

"Absolutely not, mother. I broke up with Ronald because we were fighting more than we were during the war." Hermione explained.

"Oh, about time," Mrs. Granger said. "He was all wrong for you. Even your father could tell that he didn't appreciate you. So, is there anyone else?" Mrs. Granger asked slyly, while looking straight at Harry.

"Yes, Harry and I have started dating, if you must know." Hermione said with a small blush appearing on her face.

"Harry, I do believe that I should give you the 'you hurt my daughter, I will kill you' speech but I think that my daughter is more than capable of doing that herself, so consider this your warning. However, I know that you will take good care of our daughter, so congratulations. I had a feeling that Hermione would someday day end up with you. From what we can tell from her letters home, she really likes you, so don't screw up." Mr. Granger warned Harry in his fatherly voice that screamed 'what she doesn't do, I will'.

"There is no way I would hurt Hermione. She has been the one constant thing in my life since I was introduced to magic. I would die for her, and die before I hurt her, sir." Harry told Mr. Granger seriously, showing just how deeply he cared for Hermione.

"I know you would Harry, and congratulations. You have successfully passed the threatening test. I have a feeling that we will be welcoming you into the family very soon. You may call me Reegan and my wife's name is Taylor." Mr. Granger finished with a smile and holding his hand out to shake Harry's. As soon as Harry has shaken Reegan's hand, there was a small squeal and Hermione launched herself at her father.

"Thank you so much, daddy," she said.

"That's all right, pumpkin. I know how much he means to you." Reegan told his daughter.

"Now, where are you staying?" Taylor asked her daughter.

"If it's all right with you, I was hoping we could stay here for a week. After that, I want to take you back home to England." Hermione told her mother.

"Actually honey, your father and I won't be going back to England. We quite like it here and have decided to stay. Before you erased our memories, your father and I had been talking about moving to Australia. We were going to move here, war or no war. I'm sorry Hermione, but we won't be coming with you. You, however, are most welcome to stay here with us. Australia is a lovely country and I'm sure that you would feel quite at home here." Taylor told her daughter.

"Not coming back?" Hermione said in disbelief. "Mum, Harry and I can't stay here, no matter how much we want to. We haven't let anyone back in England know where we were going. We had only planned to be gone for a week. No, we can't stay. It is just not possible." Hermione blabbered on.

"Why not, Hermione? I necessarily don't want to go back. If not for your parents, think about how the people in England would accept our relationship, Hermione. They all believe that we were 'destined' to be the Weasleys'." Harry explained to her. "Do you really want to go back to that?"

"No, but Harry, what about you? The magical people in England will notice that you are missing." Hermione said, trying to come up with a good enough reason to return.

"Hermione, they don't need me. 'The Boy Who Lived' did as he was supposed to and saved the world. They will forget about me now that they don't need me to save them and that is a really good thing, Hermione." Harry told her. "You know I hate to be in the spotlight."

"Alright, we'll stay, on the condition that we start looking for a place immediately." Hermione said with a tone that said 'if you don't comply, you're toast."

'Done deal. I was also thinking about university courses. I really don't want to live off my parents and Sirius' money for they rest of my life, so I was thinking that we look at the courses available at the nearest university and apply there. Not to mention that we should try to get a place near the university if we decide to attend." Harry said.

"Do you really want to go to university Harry?" Hermione asked surprised.

"Yes, I really want to be a muggle police officer. I've seen some of the things that they have to do and I like it. Also, I can help to make a difference in peoples' lives and help them with their serious problems." Harry told his girlfriend.

Harry's answer startled Hermione. "I would have thought that you wouldn't want to do anything that bears resemblance to an Auror."

"Well, I wouldn't want to be an Auror because they would take me for granted. I believe that by becoming a muggle police officer, I would be more useful and not taken for granted. Not to mention the fact that they don't know who I am, so at least I'll get in on talent and not on my name." Harry told her. "What would you be interested in looking at, Hermione?"

"I want to go into medicine. I want to be a midwife. I've seen how dangerous giving birth can be and I want to help." Hermione told Harry.

"So, we need to look into the nearest university, which would be?" Harry said turning to look at Reegan and Taylor.

"Wollongong University would be the closest, but you would be hard pressed to get a place out there that isn't too expensive." Taylor explained.

"Money is no problem," Harry told his girlfriend's mother. "However, I don't want to live near the university forever. A flat would be much better if we ever decide to get married and have children, wouldn't it?"

"You want to marry and have kids with me? How sweet." Hermione said with a huge smile on her. "You honestly want to marry me?"

"If we hadn't been dating for only two days, I'd marry you right now," Harry told her with a smile. "And of course, I would have asked your father for permission to marry you first."

"And I would say yes, Harry. I can see that you really love my daughter. Despite Hermione being my only child, and any father of a teenage daughter would disagree with me, I would allow her to marry you now because I can see how much you love her and I know that you will protect her, as you have already demonstrated." Reegan told Harry in a fatherly tone.

"Thank you, sir. You have no idea of what that means to me." Harry told Reegan.

"I think that I do, Harry. I would be proud to call you family, son." Reegan told Harry.

"All right, you two, break it up before you make both us women cry. You wouldn't want two crying women on your hands, now would you?" Taylor teased to two men with a smile on her face.

"Yes dear." Reegan said in a bored tone.

"And Harry, welcome to the family." Taylor said.

(A/N: The ending is needed in the second chapter. This is the end of chapter one. Please review and let me know what you think.)


	2. As The Years Roll By

RUNNING TO HOME

Chapter 2: As The Years Roll By

It had been four years since that faithful day Harry and Hermione had arrived in Australia and had decided not to return to England. Much had happened since then. Harry and Hermione moved into a rented flat near the local university, where they enrolled for criminology and midwifery courses respectively.

During the course of the classes the couple attended, they made many friends, but only a few really close ones. However, they never revealed their most important secret, even to these close friends. They used magic sparingly, as they didn't know if the English wizards were still looking for them as they had when they first disappeared.

Harry and Hermione regularly saw Reegan and Taylor and talked to them on the phone everyday. The pair was close to the only people who knew really them. After Reegan and Taylor had accepted Harry into the family, Harry had started to treat them like the parents he never knew and they treated him like their own son and they referred to him as such. Hermione's parents were always there for the important events in couple's lives. And today was no exception.

Today was the day that Harry and Hermione were to graduate from their courses. It was a hectic morning with Harry and Hermione running around trying to get ready for graduation. Hermione's parents had come over early in the morning to assist the couple to get ready. Taylor was with Hermione helping her to do her hair, and Reegan was with Harry.

Reegan was surprised to see that Harry was already dressed and not in need of assistance, and though Harry's hair was its usual mess, but he knew that there was no hope of trying to tame the bird's nest. For some reason, Harry appeared more nervous than what he normally was for events like this.

"Son, what's wrong?" Reegan asked him in a fatherly tone.

"Dad, can I ask you something?" Harry asked Reegan.

"You know you always can." Reegan told Harry, sensing that it was something important to him.

"I want to ask for Hermione's hand in marriage." Harry said softly.

Reegan looked at Harry for a moment before he spoke again. "Son, did you forget the conversation we have the day you arrived here four years ago?"

"Which part?" Harry asked him curiously.

"The part where I said that I would have agreed to let Hermione marry you at the time, even though you were so young and had only dated for two days." Reegan reminded Harry.

"Yes, I do." Harry told him as he remembered the day that led them to be standing here today.

"Well, if I approved then, what makes you think that I wouldn't now?" He asked.

"I… I… I honestly don't know, but I just wanted to ask. I wanted it to be done properly." Harry said softly.

"I understand, Harry. You have my permission. When are you planning to ask her?" Hermione's father asked.

"Right after graduation. I'm going to ask her in front of some of our friends and you at the after party." Harry told him.

"Good. Well, again, welcome to the family son. Now let's go or we'll be late and you'll be on the couch for the first day of your engagement and that won't be very good for you." Reegan told him.

"You're right, let's go." Harry said walking towards the door. However, Reegan's voice stopped him before he opened the door.

"Just make sure you have the ring, son."

"It's in my pocket." Harry responded, before continuing to walk out of the room, closely followed by Reegan.

"We're ready." Harry told Hermione and Taylor as he walked into the lounge room. He looked at Hermione and his breath caught in his throat. Even after four years, she still did this to him. "Mione, you look absolutely beautiful."

Hermione was wearing an emerald green Chinese styled dress with silver high heels. Her hair had been put up into a bun with a pair of black chopsticks. She wore little makeup, which complimented all her facial features and natural beauty perfectly.

"Thank you, Harry. And you look very handsome." Harry was wearing a black Armani suit and black shoes, accompanied by a green shirt.

"Right, everyone in the car now or we will be late." Taylor told the others, using her hands to shoo them out the door and into the awaiting car. A fifteen-minute drive had them situated at the entrance to the University. A parking spot was found and the four occupants of the car stepped out and made their way to the University hall.

The Hall was divided into two sections. There was a side for the audience and a side for the graduates. There was a stage at the front of the hall with beautiful floral arrangements situated in big blue pots in front of the stage.

"Right, good luck you two and we'll see you after the ceremony." Taylor told the two, giving them both a hug and a kiss before going to take a seat in the audience. Reegan also bid the couple farewell, before taking his seat next to his wife.

It was a twenty-minute wait before somebody appeared on stage. The person asked those in attendance to stand for the Official Party, so that the ceremony could begin. After the Official Party had entered the room and made their way to the stage, a woman with an aged face appeared at the dais and began to speak.

"Welcome, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Beatrice Price and I'm the chosen representative for the graduating classes of Midwifery and Criminology. Through the course of the last four years, many a thing has been asked of these graduates in front of me. I won't go into to much detail, but some of these things included practical assessments and the all important theory assessments that accompanied every part of these graduates' courses. I'm proud to look down at these people before me and say that they passed all the course requirements and they are now certified University graduates. When I call your name please come to the stage and collect your certificates. If applause could be held to the end, as we have a lot of people graduating today, it would be much appreciated."

It was some time before Harry and Hermione had received their certificates. Once the ceremony had finished, Harry and Hermione made their way over to Reegan and Taylor. By the time they had reached them, their close friends had already reached Hermione's parents.

There was Harry's best friend, Miguel Sanchez, a twenty-three year old Spanish born and bred male. He was the typical tall, dark and handsome man that every girl dreamed of. He stood at roughly at about six feet and three inches, was muscular, but not to the extent that he looked like he was on steroids, had dark hair and eyes, mysterious features and was very fit. Miguel was graduating the same course as Harry.

Hermione's best friend was also there. Her name was Elena Banderas. She was also Spanish. She had long dark hair and eyes, fine features and was well built, which was contributed to the fact that she was on the University girl's soccer team. She was also Miguel's girlfriend of two years. Elena was graduating the same course as Hermione. The couple had meet through Harry and Hermione about three years ago and had started dating a year later.

"Well, to celebrate, how about the six of us go out to lunch?" Harry proposed to the group. "My treat." The group quickly agreed, knowing that it was useless to protest at the Harry's announcement of paying for all of them as he always won in the end anyway.

Harry rounded everyone up into the car and got into the drive's seat, having got his license with Hermione the previous year. A fifteen minute drive later, they were at a very classy Italian restaurant. Harry walked up to the front counter and said, "Potter, table for six."

The woman at the counter checked the reservation list and nodded to Harry and the others. "Right this way please." The lady said as she walked over to a table with enough spots to fit them all.

"You planned this." Hermione accused Harry.

"That I did, my dear." He told her with a grin, as he sat across from her.

A waiter came and gave them all a menu before taking drink orders.

"I know everyone here drinks white wine, so I'll have the best white wine in the house please." Harry told the waiter. The waiter nodded before going to fill Harry's order.

Five minutes later, the waiter returned with the requested wine. He filled all six glasses and handed them to the occupants of the table, before retreating.  
"Now," Harry began. "There was something more than just celebrating graduation that led me to choose this restaurant for lunch. There was something that I wanted to ask Hermione." Harry said as he stood up. Harry took Hermione's hand and asked her to stand also. He pulled out the ring box from his pocket and opened it as he bent down on one knee.

"My dearest Hermione," He began, "The day we arrived here four years ago, I told you that I would have married you right then and there. You are the only one that has always been there for me and for that, I am grateful. I can only hope that you will do one more thing for me and so I must ask you, will you marry me?"

The minute Harry had knelt down, the whole restaurant went quite. All the occupants were listening intensely at his speech and waited for an answer.

Hermione was looking at Harry in shock. After a minute, she started to give her answer. "Harry, we've known each other for eleven years and have dated for four. I love you. My answer is yes." She told him with tears in her eyes.

Harry slipped the ring onto her finger and stood. He wrapped his hands around her waist and pulled her in for a kiss. The whole restaurant filled with applause for the newly engaged couple. Harry and Hermione broke the kiss and turned to their friends and family. The four already had glasses in hand, toasting the couple. Congratulations were given and the other two females fawned over the ring, which was a 14k Yellow Gold Princess Cut Diamond Engagement Ring with ancient runes engraved on the inside. Harry had told her that it was his great-grandmother's engagement ring passed down to his grandmother and then his mother.

After lunch, the six went back to Harry and Hermione's home and celebrated well into the night.

* * *

It had been a hectic few months, but it was the happiest that Harry and Hermione had ever been. Harry had immediately been recruited for the Wollongong Police Department and the Wollongong Hospital Maternity Ward had taken Hermione. They had spent the last three months working and, with the help of Mrs. Granger and Elena, planned for the wedding that was to be held three months to the day that Harry had proposed. It was to be held at the Wollongong Botanical Gardens.

The day of the wedding had arrived quicker than the couple had believed it would. Mr. Granger, Harry and Miguel had organized all the decorations, with some help from the female assistance at the Gardens. Hermione had been left alone to get ready with her mother and Elena.

Elena was to be Hermione's bridesmaid, Mrs. Granger would be the Matron of Honor, Mr. Granger was to walk Hermione down the aisle and Miguel was to be Harry's best man. It was only to be a small wedding with a maximum of fifty people, most being classmates and Hermione's family who had flown in from all over the world.

At present, Hermione was in her room at home getting into her wedding dress and having her hair and make up done by the professional hairdresser that they had hired. Hermione's mother was next in line and Elena was after her. The women were all having a glass of champagne and were toasting Hermione.

At the same time, Harry, Keegan and Miguel were getting ready in a room that the Botanical Gardens Manager had supplied them with for the short amount of time that it would take for them to get dress.

Before they knew it, Hermione, Taylor and Elena were in the limo on the way to the Gardens, where Harry was standing at the end of the aisle with Miguel. Mr. Granger was waiting for the limo to arrive so that he could walk Hermione down the aisle. It wasn't a long wait before the limo pulled up and the women got out of the car.

"You all look wonderful." Mr. Granger complimented the women.

"Thank you, daddy." Hermione said with a small blush on her face.

"Are you ready, pumpkin?" He asked her.

"More than you will ever know." Hermione replied.

"Well, let's do it then." Me Granger responded as he took Hermione's arm in his.

Music filled the air as Elena started walking down the aisle, closely followed by Taylor. They were wearing the same soft blue dress and held a simple white orchid.  
As the reached the end of the aisle, they turned to stand opposite Harry and Miguel. Harry was wearing a traditional tuxedo with a green shirt in place of a white one and Miguel was wearing a tuxedo with the same blue that Elena and Taylor were wearing.

The music changed to the bridal march as Hermione and her father started up the aisle. Reegan was wearing the same tuxedo and shirt that Miguel was wearing. Hermione was wearing a stunning sleeveless gown that flowed out from under the chest and trailed along at the back a little. A beautiful silver tiara held Hermione's hair up in a bun. She wore minimal make up, but it was clearly professional done. Hermione's bouquet was made up of lilies surrounding an orchid.

As Hermione and her father reached the end of the aisle, Harry walked up to them with a smile on his face. Hermione's father gave Hermione a kiss on the cheek before giving her hand to Harry. The couple walked the short distance to where the celebrant was pointing to as the celebrant began the ceremony.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to witness the joining together of two souls. Harry and Hermione have each chosen to recite their own vows. Harry will you recite your vows to Hermione, please." The celebrant said as she began the ceremony.

Harry took both of Hermione's hands into his as he began to recite his vows. "My dearest Hermione, not a day goes by that I don't thank God for having you in my life. You are my best friend, my lover, and my soul mate. You are the rock that I cling to when times get hard. The moment I met you was the luckiest day of my life. You are the only one that has been there for me through all the trouble I seemed to get into. But I still swear that I didn't go looking for trouble, it always came looking for me." Harry paused and waited for the soft laughs to stop. "You are the only one I know I can count on. I have loved you since the first moment I met you and I will continue to love you for all eternity."

"Hermione, please recite you vows to Harry." Said the celebrant.

"Harry, you are my life. I knew the moment we met that we would have something that would last a lifetime. There have been times when you tried to push me away, but I stood strong and never gave up on you. I stand here before you today and I forget all the bad things that have happened to us and I remember all the good. As I am your rock, you are mine. I know that when trouble finds me, you will always be there for me. I love you and will continue to do so for all eternity."

By the time Harry and Hermione had finished saying their vows, there was not a dry eye in the house. Even the men had tears in their eyes. No one had heard more meaningful vows before, including the celebrant.

"Harry, now take Hermione's left hand and place the ring on her finger and repeat after me. With this ring I, Harry James Potter, take you, Hermione Jane Granger, to be my lawfully wedded wife." The celebrant said.

Harry repeated the vows as he slipped the ring on Hermione's finger.

"Hermione, take Harry's left hand and place the ring on his finger and repeat after me. With this ring I, Hermione Jane Granger, take you, Harry James Potter to be my lawfully wedded husband."

Hermione repeated the vows as she slipped the ring on Harry's finger.

"Harry and Hermione have pledged their love for one another before all of you this day. It gives me great pleasure to introduce to you for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Potter. Harry you may now kiss your bride."

Applause and cheers were heard through the gardens as Harry cupped Hermione's face with his hand and kissed her for the first time as man and wife.

* * *

The reception was held in a tent that was not to far from the place were Harry and Hermione were wed. The couple danced their first dance to a song called "Everything I do, I do It For You' by Clay Aiken. The best man as well as Reegan and Taylor, who gave a combined speech, made the speeches. The photographers made the night more special. They had filmed the whole wedding and had played it on a big screen for everyone to see. Before long it was time for Harry and Hermione to leave for their honeymoon.

Harry and Hermione both made the decision to honeymoon for four months in Italy and had asked for the time off from their jobs. It wasn't long before they were on the plane that would take them to Italy. After a long flight, the plane touched down in Rome just after the sun had set. The newly wedded couple exited the plane, collected their luggage and took a taxi to their hotel 'Roma di casa', which meant 'House of Rome. This was the most expensive hotel in the area, and rightly so. The building itself was exquisite.

The couple barley made it through their door before their hands were all over each other. This would be the first time that either of them had made love. They had promised to wait till they got married, so that it would be more special for both of them. (A/N: I'm going to leave it up to you to imagine what they do next.)

* * *

Over the course of the next four months, Harry and Hermione visited every famous landmark that the country held. They even spent time in the Otzal Alps where Otzi the Iceman was found in 1991. However, the honeymoon was almost ruined when Hermione started to get sick. She felt nauseated every morning, tired and her appetite had increased. The pair was worried and went to see a doctor at the hospital in Venice.

The doctor conducted some routine tests, including blood and urine samples and informed the pair that it would be about a week before the tests came back. The couple was forced to extend their stay until they got the news. It was the longest week of their lives. Time just seemed to stand still. That was until they received the phone call from the doctor informing them that the test results had arrived.

Harry and Hermione left for the hospital straight after the phone call. It was a five-minute wait before they were called in to see the doctor.

"Mr. and Mrs. Potter, I have some good news for you. Mrs. Potter's tests have come back positive for pregnancy. Congratulations, you are going to have a baby." The doctor informed them with a smile on his face. "When you return to Australia, you will have to make an appointment with an OBGYN so that you can get regular check ups."

"Wow. A baby. We are going to have a baby." Harry said.

"I can't believe I didn't recognize the signs." Hermione said. "I'm a midwife; I deal with this on a daily basis. Why couldn't I tell?" Hermione said to herself.

"I think it is the fact that you were more focused on the things that you could have caught from traveling overseas, rather than looking at something as simple as being pregnant. Don't be worried, I see a lot of first time mothers that don't consider the fact that they might be pregnant." The doctor told Hermione. "Well, congratulations again and good luck."

The couple recognized the dismissal and left the office. The minute they got out the office, Harry surprised Hermione by kissing her.

"I can't believe we're having a baby. I'm so happy." Harry told her.

"I know. I'm happy, too. I can't wait to tell mum and dad. They are going to be thrilled." Hermione said to Harry.

"Well, let's get you back to the hotel then, shall we? You can call your parents right away." Harry told her.

"Oh no, the protectiveness has already started. Please God, save me." Hermione groaned.

"Oh yes." Harry replied. "Now you better run because I'm going to get you for that comment."

Hermione took the hint as Harry started after her. The couple received many smiles and shakes of the head for their behavior, but they paid them no heed, as their attention was only on one another. This would be the start of many good memories for the pair, but the future also held troubled times for them.


	3. Chapter 3

AN: Hello. I was wondering if anyone out there wants me to continue writing this story?

Also, I'm looking for a story where Vernon Dursley gives Harry a gun in the first chapter of the story. The story has Harry recruiting muggle veterans to fight in the war, one of which is Hermione's grandfather. If anyone knows the story I'm talking about please let me know, it would be greatly appreciated.

Mione713


	4. Chapter 4

Hey thanks to everyone who named the story 'Old Soldiers Never Die' for me. I will try my best to continue this story. I will be taking this story down for a while so that I can edit it to fit the plot going on in my head. I'll try my best not to be too long.

Thanks again every one.

Mione713


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